BTS OT7 1/16 LIVE

아미랑 아리랑 (ARMYrang ARIRANG) - ARIRANG with ARMY

My commentary in green.
My abbreviations: RM, Jin, SUGA, hobi (j-hope), Jm (Jimin), V, JK (Jung Kook aka boba aka kookooball)
If you're new here, Jung Kook most frequently triggers severe cuteness aggression
Also Jin has aged backwards 374895 years and looks like a WHOLE baby this entire live.
Links in purple - when there are links with no other explanation, I'm just linking to the spot in the live that jumps to that moment
cover 718

JK: 🎶why isn't it workingg why isn't it workingg
SUGA: is anyone there?
::inexplicable high-pitched humm - idk who is producing this noise - so 10/10 strong start::
Jin: ahnyonghasaeyo! (hello!)
JK: i can't fix..
RM: hellooo
JK: heh look at this punk (talking to the tablet for not cooperating with him)
hobi: hellooo

*안녕하십니까 (ahnyonghasimnikka) = is a more formal way of saying hello in Korean than "ahnyonghasaeyo"

hobi: did it work?
Jin: it did it did it did
RM: what is ...
JK: the live isn't coming up 🥺
RM: no no no ::helps boba::
Jin also helping: no press 'live' 'go live'

(Today I learned that BTS STILL doesn't really know how to use Weverse and somehow... this gives me great joy)
JK was trying to figure out how to turn on their live to monitor themselves and couldn't find it so hyungs to either side help 😭

hobi to Jin: hyung, did you post that? (referring to Jin's photo WV post the day they did V's windy birthday live multiple times)
Jin: yea I did
hobi: what is that?
Jin: when you guys did the live without me
Jimin&hobi giggles
hobi: oh really?
Jin: yea I got there and took a pic..

(Jin's post caption reads "was told they went live while I was working out so I ran here w the quicknessss and where are you kids?)

V to j-hope: did you post that thing from Jin hyung's birthday..?
hobi: oh the thing we had to do over? i do have that.. i'll post it later as a 'behind the scenes'

*비하인드 (behind) = "behind" as in behind the scenes 😑

RM/JK/Jin: okay okay (they got the live to work lol)
hobi: wowww

Jm:why do we ...
RM: why do we look so depressed... should we have used a filter?

JK: a filter..
RM: is it cuz we're all dark? like the back..
Jm: cuz like.. this is not good
hobi consoling everyone: [it's okay] it's natural - we just came from practice
RM: tbh we intentionally chose this spot to turn on the live because we thought it'd look nice but..
SUGA: seriously.. but somehow..I can't focus on anything else now (re: them looking not the way they want.. loll)
Jm: seriously.. like we were practicing maybe we should've just stayed in the practice room and done it there..
JK: should we just turn off the lights?
RM: no no then it'd be way too dark
Jin: that might be better
JK: but that might force it to be brighter overall
Jin: that's right that's right

I LOVE how Jin sides w/ his baby daughter, kookooball - no one steps on kookoo..unless of course it's Jin LOLLL

hobi: no it's all good..
Jm: but this..
JK: they said it's not (as in ARMY commented it's not bad/not a problem)
RM: okay

hobi: okay everyoneee - we've turned on a live... it's been a while huh
JK/RM/Jin: ahnyonghasaeyooo
Jm: we areeee 🫲🏻Bangtan Sonyeondan🫱🏻

no one expected this lmao

hobi: is that how we've changed our greet??
Jm::sheepish now that attention is on him::
RM: do it do it..
Jm: We aree...
EVERYONE but the Daegu boys: "BANGTAN SONYEONDAN" (LOLLLLLL SUGA is just fixing his hair and V is thinking of what to say after they're done)

V: no it's like.. 2! 3! bangggg ::making airplane noises and "flying" his BTS hand symbol in front of him like a plane, JK sees and follows along::

Also. please examine the bunn cheeks.

boba is full circle again today #faithful

::Jin laughs at his baby children playing::
::RM contemplates all his life choices...::
::SUGA dreams of the past::
LOLLLL

hobi: that was so weak (sounding/low volume)

Jin to hobi?: have you guys been well? what have you all been doing?
hobi: well to start, happy new year
JK/Jin: happy new year

(this has nothing to do with anything. RM is so hot ajkdlf;gja;lkdfg;lfrackjakdfg okay goodbye. his dimples and his ..voice this whole live are destroying me..........
Jin: cuz it's been such a long time since we've been able to show ourselves so..
RM: happy new year
hobi to V: happy new year
V to somewhere: happy new year
::JK in his own world looking at something on the ceiling::

hobi: it's the first time after the countdown that we're seeing them right?
BTS: yea that's right that's right
hobi: i mean of course we've been practicing together all along so..
Jin: seeing each other daily
JK: we just got back from practicing

hobi to RM: hey is it the 16th today?
JK: the 16th
hobi answering himself: the 16th the 16th
Jin: time goes my too fast..
hobi: waa it's so good to see you guys

JK: we've been practicing really hard
RM: until just before [this] we were practicing and..
JK: meeting and practicing and meeting

V: these days.. it's too fast
hobi/Jin: what's too fast
SUGA: time's too fast..
V: there's.. just a lot
SUGA: yea there's a lot to do

Jin: every day.. there's ..
hobi: i think it's only gonna get busier from this point..
Jm: Bangtanee and ARMY and
JK: ARIRANG

View on Threads

Jm: Bangtanee and ARMY and
hobi: ARIRANG
JK: ARMY랑 BANGTAN이랑 아리랑
hobi: ARIRANG was announced yesterday right? ::BTS nods in agreement::
hobi to RM: FINALLY the Album name announcement..
RM: i thought i was going to die of *frustration

*답답하다 (dapdaphada) = feeling frustrated, stuffy, suffocated, or stifled

there's not one word that equates to this feeling, it can be frustration but it's like a frustration born out of a suffocating/stuffy/stifling feeling/reason/situation

For example, you can feel dapdaphae if you're trying to get a word in during a meeting but people keep talking over you - being 'stifled' by being drowned out by other people

You can feel physically dapdaphae when you're in a packed, warm, stuffy elevator wearing a giant bulky fluffy winter coat and you have nowhere to go.. so like a frustration/stuffy/smothered feeling where you desperately want a breath of fresh air

Here, RM/BTS use this word to describe the necessary holding back of information that probably felt very suffocating for a while because they were itching to share with us for so long!

And if you've been following me for a bit, you know I ADORE and deeply respect BTS' wordplay game- but I also see a lot of ARMY overly impressed with very common Korean phrases like 'oh they're SOOO thoughtful/poetic' and while I don't want to say 'that's not true' - this is an instance where you might feel that but this is a VERY commonplace word that most Koreans use all the time

I'm all about trying to ACCURATELY portray the language. When there's awe-inspiring wordplay, double/triple entendres, jaw-dropping rhymes and bilingual references, etc. I'll try my best to point it out - but it always makes me kinda facepalm when I'm okay.. oh that's how they heard that huh.. because when I try to unpack words/idioms/concepts from Korean to English - I know what is commonplace versus impressive.. but I'm realizing that of course non-Korean speakers would have no sense of that. So I'll try to include that a bit more - not because I don't want you to be impressed. I just want you to know accurately.

BTS all kinda mumble in agreement w/ RM's ::dapdaphan maeum:: (with this morning's translation and this previous note, you should know what this means!)

Jin: right because we've all known for such a long timeeee...
RM: right..
Jin: cuz we can't say anything

starting a log of all the times JK turns into a full blown circle...

Jm: but like.. I think ARMY could've been like ...
hobi: that's true..
Jm: like.. 'all of a sudden ..Arirang?... like why?'
V: I mean I was like that too..
hobi::sunshinegiggles::

Jm: cuz in the beginning..

JK: like oh? ehh?
hobi: i mean it could've been surprising suree..
Jin: right right. .
Jm: like international fans are probably like what even is Arirang?? and Korean fans are probably like ... why Arirang now all of a sudden??

Especially for Korea-based Koreans- although Arirang is deeeeeply familiar, this was not something anyone could reasonably 'anticipate' as a global kpop group's next move in 2026 - so I'm sure this has globally stunned everyone

V being dramatic: BUT THEN the mystery surrounding this name will be revealed...
hobi: ..how.. how will it be revealed?
JK answering hobi: koong!
Jung Kook on his solo album circuit handled all the performances like a pro, swept everyone off their feat, crushed all the interviews and appearances, and worked his ass off looking like a sentient bubble the whole time. But amidst his hyungs, he is bb kookooball 100000% and I LOVE that he has so much cuddly energy when he's around his hyungs without even meaning to go into boba mode.
V: the album is coming out like koong!
::laughs::
hobi: March 20 koong!

쿵 (koong) is like Korea's "boom!" or "thud!"

RM: truthfully, i wish the album would come out sooner
Jm: I think when it does ..so much will be explained

::V finds a zipper on the back of RM's jacket and is zipping/unzipping it up and down ..he is bb::

RM: so like.. this.. well.. like.. so our.. so .. can you stop unzipping?
V: nae (yes, formal Korean LOLL)
RM: okay thank you.. so when we were all together ..[we asked ourselves] what is the most 'us'? we thought about that a lot and we wanted to show you ..where we started. All 7 of us are Korean after all and we thought it'd be good to include something that symbolizes Korea together so we started thinking about the keyword 'Arirang'.. but Arirang is interpreted differently by everyone after all cuz the lyrics are abstract
Jm: that's right
RM: it's about nostalgia and longing and love.. is what I think
JK: you're right

RM: and I think I thought about that a lot while I was in the military.. I thought about the past.. concerts
hobi: you miss everything [while in the military]
RM: like society.. ARMY.. BTS members.. the past.. and in Arirang there's also the ups and downs of life so that kind of emotion is something we wanted to encompass in this album since it's been a while since we released an album and we wanted to cover the ups and downs we've been through

hobi: and it felt the most authentic to us ..it's our roots I think.. I think Arirang was the perfect fit to show that
JK: something that could tie it all together well..
hobi: i listened to it and felt like 'oh..'

RM: and like 10 years ago, at KCON Paris we sang 'Arirang'
JK: I recently rewatched our performance there
hobi to JK: do you remember this?? ::starts doing hand motions:: we danced so hard
Jin: hahahah

RM: ..so we have that experience under our belt too.. and so like ten years later we're able to come out with our Arirang
JK: that's pretty crazy
hobi: and the logo was revealed also

Jin: the logo to.. our Jung Kookie was all ::drawing motion in the air:: "how's this?" [showing his drawings to the staff]Jin will take every chance to brag on his baby daughter kookooball and I love it every single time.
JK: that's right... when we were in America
Jin: like kept drawing like "what about this ..what about this"
JK: on an ipad - I sketched about 4 drawings to the office and they really developed it quiteee a bit
RM: while we were doing the song camp, Jung Kookie KEPT drawing on his ipad
Jin: that's right

jakdfl;gja;lkdfjgl;kadjfglkajdflgk. his mama and his greatest kpop idol celebrity crush bragging on the boba. my heartttt.

RM: and actually it's ㅇㄹㄹ ..and I mean we didn't expect anyone would figure it out but I think truly no one figured it out..
V: oh really? no one??
Jm: i mean probablyy..
JK::drawing ㅇㄹ in the air
RM: I mean I suppose someone might've figured? but like..
hobi: the ㅇㄹㄹ?
RM: yeaa

아리랑 starts with ㅇ + ㄹ + ㄹ

Jm: what'd they say in the beginning again?? after seeing the logo? i can't remember
hobi: what?
Jm: they told us what our fans thought it was
RM/hobi: ah oh really??
hobi: weren't there a lot though? (guesses) cuz Jin hyung kept saying "hello hello"
Jin: I said hello hello??

witness the face of someone who has zero memory of doing this loll
RM: hello?
hobi: yea like "helloOO" (copying the way Jin said it during their beach live)
Jm: when we were working in america when we turned on the live
Jin: oh that was just my greeting ...
Jm: they thought it 'looked' like "hello"

I have no recollection of who may have asserted this but I definitely remember it being asserted a LOT.. meanwhile I'm thinking, if Jin really spoiled the NAME of the album - he would've gotten in SO MUCH trouble.. as the mat hyung?? JIN? More on the mat hyung life here...
Jin: oh is that so.. that's actually so fascinating
V episode 284953 of saying hilarious things with a straight face: yea cuz like you saying "heLLoOoo" (copying Jin's tone) was really so. weird. they probably figured it meant something

witness the face of someone who CANNOT beleevs wot V is saying LOLLL
hobi: so Jin hyung's greeting was so weird
RM: ..but really Jin hyung was just saying hello huh
hobi: hellOoOOo

Jin::serious thinking face:: drops a dad joke

I'm CACKLING. JK WHIPS his head around to look at Jin. RM's soul has left his body. HAHAHA j-hope WAS laughing but immediately STOPS laughing when Jin cracks the joke. I am DYINGGG. and his eyes go from smizing to =_= hahahahahafdjg;ladfjg;lajdfg. kitty is unfazed.

Jin::cracking up at his own joke::
JK: ......
RM: hyung, you're not dead yet..
JK::flatly, trolling Jin:: that.was.so.hilarious.
RM: you still got it ::trolling::

this handshake is a shammm and look at JK beaming smiles to have his hyungies by his side.

THE DAD JOKE
이상하다 (eesanghada) = to be strange/weird, and V had just called Jin weird for his extravagant "heLLoOoo" greeting
이 상하다 (ee sanghada) = the tooth (이) is decayed/rotted/spoiled (상하다)
These are spelled and pronounced exactly the same way when spoken quickly. So Jin took this opportunity to say "oh if my tooth is decayed shouldn't I go see the dentist?" as in deliberately "misunderstanding" V calling him "weird" as V telling him his tooth is decayed.